The present invention relates to a rapid deployment ammunition carrier apparatus and method and especially to an ammunition belt held in an ammunition belt carrying case strapped to a vehicle seat and positioned for rapid deployment of the ammunition belt from the carrying case by an occupant of the vehicle.
In the past, it has been common to provide an ammunition carriers for use by military and police personnel. These carriers are usually belts or vests which attach to a person, such as a policeman. Ammunition vests and belts typically have ammunition pouches for holding the ammunition and are time consuming to attach to a person especially when responding to emergency situations.
Typical prior art ammunition carrying belts or vests may be seen in the Burwell U.S. Pat. No. 5,617,582 for a load bearing vest employed for military and police usage. This vest attaches over the shoulders and around the waist and is attached by pulling the vest from overhead with the user's arms extending upward to pass through the shoulder straps. The vest includes a plurality of pouches for holding ammunition. The Belson U.S. Pat. No. 4,106,121 is a tactical load bearing vest having a plurality of pouches for carrying ammunition as well as rations, weapons and ancillary supplies on the body of a soldier. The Parsons U.S. Pat. No. 7,152,247 is for a tactical jacket for a police officer and allows a police officer to carry equipment including a gun, radio, handcuffs, a flashlight, as well as extra ammunition. Other ammunition carrier vests and belts may be seen in the Falk et al. U.S. Pat. No. 5,829,060 for a vest including a retractor pocket and retractor therein and the method of manufacturing the vest and in the H. A. North U.S. Pat. No. 1,520,962 for a protective garment and in the Benjamin U.S. Pat. No. 6,119,907 for a shoulder arm gun case convertible to a belt pack. The Sidebottom U.S. Pat. No. 6,185,738 shows a tactical load bearing protective vest.
It has also been known in the past to attach various types of holding assemblies to a vehicle seat. The Hussaini et al. U.S. Pat. No. 7,207,469 is a mounting system for audio visual equipment which mounts to the back of a vehicle seat and includes a strap that fits around the headrest of the vehicle seat. The C. A. Calvin U.S. Pat. No. 3,167,182 is a gun rack for a vehicle in which the gun rack is mounted to the back of a vehicle seat. The H. Schwartz U.S. Pat. No. 2,853,219 shows an umbrella container for automobiles which mounts to the back of a vehicle seat while the Maliniak U.S. Pat. No. 6,968,960 shows a digital video disc holding assembly which mounts to the back of a vehicle seat.
In contrast to the prior body supported ammunition carrier cases, the present invention provides for a rapid deployment ammunition carrier which attaches to the front of the vehicle seat and allows the occupant to open the carrying case with one hand while sliding an arm through an ammunition vest or belt shoulder straps while pulling one shoulder strap over the head to rapidly attach the ammunition carrier to a person's body for rapid deployment by police personnel.